


The Hyperion Bible

by Keolah



Category: Babylonian Mythology, Greek and Roman Mythology, The Bible
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Bible
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-07-06
Updated: 2010-07-06
Packaged: 2017-11-13 20:00:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/507173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keolah/pseuds/Keolah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written in the style of the Bible about a world where the Greek gods live and magic and dragons are real.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Hyperion Bible

**The Book of Chaos**

**1:**  
1\. In the beginning, there was Chaos.  
2\. Chaos was nothing, and he was everything, and everything that is comes of Chaos.  
3\. All was darkness, without shadow or variation, for there was no light.  
4\. From the void came Nyx, the first goddess, the goddess of the night. Nyx was the eternal night without a day.  
5\. Then came Erebus, the first god, the god of the darkness, brother and consort to Nyx.  
6\. For a time, the two of them were alone, in perfect harmony.

 **2:**  
1\. The world was yet formless, but it was beginning to take form.  
2\. From the void emerged the twin serpents of time, Chronos and Ananke.  
3\. Chronos wrapped himself around the primordial world, latching onto his own tail with his mouth in order to hold himself in place against the shifting cosmos.  
4\. Ananke, however, darted to and fro, inside and outside, helping to shape and birth Gaia from within the stability of Chronos.  
5\. As Gaia took shape, Uranus, the sky, formed over her in order to cover and protect the earth from the void.

**3:**  
1\. Gaia was lifeless rock, still asleep.  
2\. Nyx and Erebus came together, and gave birth to Aether, the air.  
3\. And the winds swirled beneath the sky, and cut mountains and valleys over the volcanic earth.  
4\. Again Nyx and Erebus came together, and birthed Hemera, the day.  
5\. For the first time, there was light upon the world, and warmth from above, and the living rock slowly began to stir.  
6\. From Aether and Hemera was born Thalassa, the goddess of the sea, spreading out and cooling the bubbling lava.  
7\. Gaia awakened, and embraced Uranus, her perpetual mate.  
8\. From Gaia and Uranus came Pontus, the god of the sea, and Tethys, the goddess of the rivers and lakes.  
9\. And the rivers flowed down from the mountains and met the seas, and the rains fell upon the earth, and the world began to live.

**4:**  
1\. And Gaia gave birth to Hyperion. And Hyperion was not a man, but he was the father of all men.  
2\. And Gaia gave birth to Theia. And Theia was not a woman, but she was the mother of all women.  
3\. And Hyperion and Theia begat Helios, the sun, the light of the day.  
4\. And the light of the newborn sun rained brightly over the young earth.  
5\. And Hyperion and Theia begat Selene, the moon, silver to complement Helios's gold.  
6\. And the light of the moon shone gently over the young earth.  
7\. And Hyperion and Theia begat Eos, the dawn, the bringer of the day.  
8\. And the birth of their daughter, Eos, heralded a coming transition. The world was about to change.

**5:**  
1\. And so it came to pass that Gaia gave birth to Iapetus, the god of life.  
2\. First it was the seas which began to stir with life, tiny things at first which could not be seen with one's eyes.  
3\. But life bloomed and it blossomed, and as the eons turned, it grew and flourished.  
4\. The grasses in the seas spread out across the lands, growing into vast, untouched primeval forests.  
5\. The solemn, ancient trees sent their roots into the mother earth and reached their leafy fingers unto the father sky.  
6\. And Pontus and Thalassa begat Proteus, the god of change.  
7\. And there were fishes of many kinds swimming in the seas, and for a time, life was a wild cacophony of infinite variation, ever-changing.  
8\. Insects spread across the land, blooming flowers following in their wake, bringing with them the coming of change across the world.  
9\. And there were animals, of many kinds, beasts strange and wonderful, the likes of which the world would never see again.  
10\. Out of the primordial mists of the prehistoric world, the dragons were born, slithering out of their eggs and taking to wing on the warm winds of the young earth.

* * *

**The Book of Dragons**

**1:**  
1\. And eons passed, and beings came and went, ever-shifting and changing with the rapidly evolving world.  
2\. Only the mighty dragons, nigh gods in their own right, remained a constant, ruling over the world with their power and their rage.  
3\. All other beings cowered before the might of the dragons, who devoured any that they deemed unworthy.  
4\. The most beautiful places on the earth, the dragons guarded and claimed as their own.  
5\. The most brilliant examples of Gaia's glory, the dragons hoarded and kept for themselves.  
6\. Not even the gods cared to challenge the dragons' right to rule over the world as they saw fit.  
7\. And so, for many eons, the world belonged to the dragons.

 **2:**  
1\. And then, out of the Chaos and onto the ever-changing world, Themis was born.  
2\. And Themis was the goddess of natural law. She brought order out of chaos, and she formed patterns where there was only confusion before.  
3\. And from Iapetus and Themis, life and order, Prometheus was born.  
4\. And Prometheus came upon the younger children of Hyperion and Theia, and saw that they were not gods, nor beasts, nor dragons, but something entirely new.  
5\. They were men, and they were women, and though they seemed weak and frail beside the mighty beasts, they were far more clever and cunning.  
6\. They were adaptable and capable of doing many things with their hands, and Prometheus saw in them this untapped potential.  
7\. The dragons have holed themselves up in their lairs, Prometheus said to himself. They have done little for eons but terrorized the weaker beasts.  
8\. Perhaps in these new beings there is potential for ones who can finally challenge the reign of the dragons.  
9\. And so, Prometheus took the young humans under his wing, and hid them away so that the dragons might not find them and devour them.  
10\. Prometheus guided them and taught them, bringing out their potential and giving them many gifts of knowledge formerly reserved for the gods.  
11\. They learned to make fire, not with their thoughts or breath but with their hands. And they learned to build.  
12\. And when the humans began to build vast and mighty cities, Prometheus could hide them from the dragons no longer.

**3:**  
1\. The dragons saw what the humans had done, and what they had build, and they were angry, and jealous.  
2\. How dare these upstart, fragile apes usurp what should be rightfully theirs?  
3\. The dragons came upon Babylon, the first great city of the humans. It was a shining gem of artifice, masterfully constructed of wood and stone.  
4\. The dragons surrounded Babylon, and burned it with their fiery breath, and crushed it with their claws, and ground its ruins beneath their scales.  
5\. But the humans were undeterred. They rebuilt Babylon, and it was twice as glorious and twice as beautiful as it had been before.  
6\. Metis had given them thought, and Morpheus had brought them dreams, and the humans were determined not to squander these gifts.  
7\. They offered sacrifice to Nyx, asking for her blessing. And the goddess of the night stretched out her hand and blanketed them in comforting shadow.  
8\. They offered sacrifice to Hypnos, asking for his blessing. And the god of sleep let the dragons drift away in slumber for a time.  
9\. And under the cover of the night, humans crept into the lairs of the dragons and stole away their most priceless treasures while the dragons slept.  
10\. Many dragons died in their sleep as the humans took vengeance upon that which had been destroyed at Babylon.

**4:**  
1\. Marduk, the most powerful of the surviving dragons, awoke from his slumber, and he was enraged.  
2\. And he gathered his brethren together, and once again the dragons made war upon men.  
3\. But men had gained much while the dragons had slept. Their blades could pierce dragonhide, and they had learned to wield magic with far more alacrity than the dragons ever had.  
4\. The dragons were beaten back that day, and much blood was shed upon the earth, blood of dragons and blood of men.  
5\. Marduk was shamed, and angered, but he knew that he would not win this day.  
6\. Marduk withdrew his brethren from the field, and for a time men had peace once again.  
7\. Marduk went to speak with Tiamat, the mother of the dragons, about the human scourge.  
8\. They build and steal, Marduk said to her, and they slay our hatchlings in their sleep. We must destroy them all, or all is lost.  
9\. But Tiamat was unphased, and merely shook her head, and said, We will not bring down these creatures through war.  
10\. They are small and quick, and there are many more of them than there are of us. They live and die in the span of decades, while our kind take an age to mature.  
11\. Let us turn them away from the gods. Let them worship us, instead, as is our due. Then we shall have their power as well.

**5:**  
1\. And so Marduk returned to Babylon.  
2\. He transformed himself into the shape of a man, and walked amongst the people unnoticed for what he truly was.  
3\. And Marduk showed to the people of Babylon images of dragons, graceful and beautiful, and he bid them to worship them.  
4\. But the humans were hesitant at first. They still remembered the destruction of Babylon.  
5\. But Marduk had the patience of dragons. Generations passed, as he slowly warped and corrupted the hearts of men.  
6\. And men made for themselves images of dragons, wrought in gold or carved in crystal. And men began to worship dragons rather than the true gods.  
7\. And the gods cast their gaze down upon the city of Babylon, and they saw men bowing down before the crystal dragon, and they were displeased.  
8\. And so the gods sent Eris down unto the world to sow strife amongst the human peoples.  
9\. And men fought with men, and nations were sundered and their tongues confused.  
10\. And so the city of Babylon was destroyed a second time, but this time it was by men.

* * *

**The Book of Themis**

**1:**  
1\. The will of the gods had been turned from men for their transgressions.  
2\. And so it came to pass that Themis, the goddess of order, looked upon what men had done, and was distressed.  
3\. Look at them, she said to herself. They slay and destroy without regard for one another.  
4\. They eat and drink when they are not hungry or thirsty, and they mate whenever they wish as much as they wish.  
5\. If they will not follow the natural laws that the animals and even the dragons abide by, then they must be given their own laws.  
6\. And so Themis took on the shape of a woman, and came down amongst the people.  
7\. And she told them, You have strayed from the will of the gods.  
8\. To atone for your crimes, you must make appropriate sacrifice, and return to follow these laws.  
9\. These are the laws of heaven.  
10\. Though you may make for yourself any law with which to govern yourself as it not violate these laws, they shall be merely laws of man.  
11\. Only the courts of man will recognize the laws of man, but the gods themselves shall give judgment to the laws of heaven.  
12\. No punishment shall be set upon you by the gods during life, allowing you a chance to atone for your crimes if you can.  
13\. But should you die with the stain of corruption upon your soul and unrepentent crimes against your name, woe be to you, for Erebus awaits your soul.

 **2:**  
1\. Thou shalt not murder.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to slay another being with malicious intent.  
3\. You may slay a living being out of immediate defense for your life or the life of another.  
4\. You may slay a living being in just retribution for crimes against another, but never against yourself.  
5\. For true justice is without bias or malice, and truth is blind and yet sees all.  
6\. Murderers will find themselves cast into Erebus upon death, where they will spend ten eons of suffering to atone for their crime, reliving the pain which they caused again and again.

**3:**  
1\. Thou shalt not steal.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to take unto yourself that which rightfully belongs to another.  
3\. Thieves will find themselves cast into Erebus upon death, where they will have nothing, and spend an eon in the darkness to atone for their crime.  
4\. To atone for this crime in life, you must return that which was stolen if possible, or if not, to make fair restitution to the one from whom you stole.

**4:**  
1\. Thou shalt not rape.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to violate the personal sanctity of a woman who is not your own.  
3\. The wives of other men are forbidden to you to touch.  
4\. Neither shall you violate an unmarried daughter. You must take her to wife in marriage before she is your own.  
5\. Neither shall you violate another man in such a way as you would a woman.  
6\. If a man seeks to live as a woman, he must be taken by another man as a wife, and married before the eyes of the gods, even as he would a woman.  
7\. Neither shall you take for wife your sibling, nor your parent, nor your child, nor any siblings, parents, or children of any of these.  
8\. Only those to whom you do not share an immediate tie of blood may be taken as wife.  
9\. Adulterers will find themselves cast into Erebus upon death, where they will know only darkness and see never the face of Eros, and spend an eon alone to atone for their crime.

**5:**  
1\. Thou shalt not make for thyself a crystal dragon.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to turn your face upon the gods, and to give instead your worship to other beings.  
3\. You shall not make an image or figure to worship of any dragon or animal or man or beast that walks or slithers upon the earth, or swims within the sea, or flies within the air.  
4\. You shall keep sacred the gods, and offer sacrifices only to the gods.  
5\. Idolaters will find themselves cast into Erebus upon death, where the face of all the gods shall be turned from them, and they shall be alone in the darkness for a thousand eons.  
6\. To atone for this crime in life, you must destroy your idols and make sacrifice to the gods in repentence.

**6:**  
1\. Thou shalt not violate a sacred place.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to profane a temple, or fane, or sanctuary, or caern.  
3\. The gods shall turn their backs upon he who defiles a sacred place, and he shall know not succor nor comfort in their arms.  
4\. Defilers will find themselves cast into Erebus upon death, where the face of all the gods shall be turned from them, and they shall be alone in the darkness for a thousand eons.  
5\. To atone for this crime in life, you must restore the sanctity of the place which you had previously violated, and make sacrifice to the gods in repentence.

**7:**  
1\. Then Themis turned her gaze to the dragons, for she knew that they were not innocent.  
2\. Do not think that I believe you blameless in all things, she told them.  
3\. You are more than beasts, but less than gods, but your might and power make you a danger to men and beasts and gods alike.  
4\. Marduk, for your crimes against men and gods, I hereby cast you into Tartarus to be imprisoned for a thousand eons.  
5\. And mighty Marduk roared and wailed as he was cast into the pit.

**8:**  
1\. And Themis turned her gaze to those among the humans who wielded the power of magic.  
2\. You mages, she said. You wield power above and beyond the capabilities of ordinary men.  
3\. You are as powerful as your wit and skill can make you, and you can challenge the might of the dragons, yea even the might of the gods themselves.  
4\. Should you violate the laws of heaven, it shall not be to Erebus that your souls be sent, but to Tartarus, to be imprisoned so that you may not threaten anyone else.  
5\. The same onus that applies to any dragon or magical beast applies to you.

**9:**  
1\. Thou shalt not raise the dead.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to return to life any being which has passed beyond the veil.  
3\. You shall not disturb the peace and happiness of the souls within Elysium, neither shall you prematurely end the punishment of the souls within Erebus or Tartarus.  
4\. The fate of souls is for the gods alone to decide, and no man nor beast shall interfere with it.  
5\. Necromancers will find themselves cast into Tartarus upon death, to be imprisoned for a hundred eons.

**10:**  
1\. Thou shalt not manipulate time.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to traverse time to return to that which has already occurred in order to alter the course of events.  
3\. Each thing must happen in its appointed time, and not one hour sooner nor later.  
4\. You may not utter prophecies of what may come, for the future is to be known only to the gods.  
5\. You may not artificially extend your lifespan beyond the count of years granted to you.  
6\. Chronomancers will find themselves cast into Tartarus upon death, to be imprisoned for all of eternity.

**11:**  
1\. Thou shalt not violate the minds of others.  
2\. It is forbidden to you to trespass upon the thoughts of another being in order to bend their will to your own.  
3\. The free will of man is a gift of the gods, and only the gods may see fit to withhold it.  
4\. Neither may you alter the memories of another being in order to trick them into following your will.  
5\. Controllers will find themselves cast into Tartarus upon death, to be imprisoned for fifty eons.  
6\. To atone for this crime in life, you must subvert your will to that of the person whose will you violated, and become their slave for a period of their choosing.


End file.
